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She’s been caught —
crying through every night,
her heart still weeping
though no tears in sight.

With red weeping eyes,
she stares in the mirror.
Her hands are trembling,
cold as winter.

What keeps her up in the dark?
What sets this silent flood in spark?
She wonders about things that might have been,
and all the aching what ifs within.

She wishes to hold herself tight,
to feel — even briefly — that things are right,
whispers to gods to grant her sleep,
just one quiet night without the weep.

Kneeling down, her body sags,
beneath the weight of unseen bags.
The floor and walls a cold alabaster,
she folds in half before Our Father.

Will the heavens hear her plea?
Or let her sink into the deep sea?
Will the ground bury her under,
or the waves drag her down in thunder?

She looks again — red eyes stare back,
mirrored in the glass, cracked.
Red as the blood she saw just prior,
as she dragged the thin metal deeper.


- N.V. 🥀
my wounds
are ocean-deep.
caution advised.
even seasoned souls,
spotless and sure,
could easily drown.
July 2, 2025.
Down upon a pale path draws the knife
Dull, sharp stinging pain the first the worst
The second even better, viscous pomegranate
Seeds of doubt pour out

I try not to scream and shout, closed lips
To the hurting in my heart
Brain holding my feelings in hands wringing
Wet with tears slippery salt mingling

The light comes in and out
Candle lighting itself from it's own smoke
Eyes open to find myself still here
I wish they didn't

In the morning I hear footsteps
And all they can say
Do you feel better?
Yet to be spoken? No!
For him shall not speaketh.
Such pity to listen, but seeth and feel!
Dost thou feel him?

Surround o dark!
Surround o light!
Surround o flowers!
Surround o decay!
For him and her,
Shall affordation bless ye!

Oh! What such shallness!
Praise! Afirm! Adore!
Yet shall thou not akneel?
Accursed!

Embody o flower, dear.
I shall not speak o' truth!
Embody o carpel, dear.
Speaketh no sound, dear!

Lo and behold!
Shall none exist and inexist.
Lo and behold!
None flowers shall wither nor bloom!
Strip one, dear.

Dear, no speaketh o' truth!
For I shall not and I care for thee!
Thou shalt be confused.
I shall not give thou my reflection!
Yet shall I give lessons.
Dear, you don't want to trust strangers.
Tomorrow needs you .
You don’t know what seeds
you will miss out on seeing grow.
You already planted them so,
you
might as well live another day.

See what sprouts pop up in the
warmth of the sun.
Tell me, are you having fun now?

It’s just the way life goes.
So, please stay a few more days.
A few more always leads to
A few more.
Cadmus May 11
~

Don’t grow up.

~

ITS A TRAP

~
Adulthood promises freedom, but often steals wonder.
Yusuf May 10
Come aboard this submarine,
and observe the sea,
so peaceful and serene,
yet terrifying.

Ebbing and flowing,
never shrinking nor growing,
the tides come
for payment due.

Waves crash and slash,
writhing and weaving,
smoothing rocks,
bringing seashells
but spreading plastic.

Coral grows in a thousand hues
amidst the bright and dreary blues.
Fish and octopi wander
unaware of the world so sombre.

Debris and rotting bones sink,
along with skin and dust,
uncaring and indifferent.

Descend into these darkened depths,
no, no need for eyes,
do try and hold your breath.

Curling tails and bladed mandibles,
they promise to only take a bite.
Deceiving lights and crushing pressure,
this place welcomes not.

Finally.
At the depths.
The water crushes your skull,
and you are truly free.

Why is there a plastic bag?
Alex Jun 2024
I saw you in the water
I wonder if you'll make me drown
You pulled me in and held me close
Like no one has ever held me before
I enjoyed the embrace, even if it would be the last
Making me forget how to swim
That's a drone in your Waters
The warmth of the embrace
The cold that starts to set in
I feel like I'm drowning
All the air has left my lungs
What am I to do
I can't fight it
I'm too far from the surface
The only one at around
the one who sunk me down
Do I deserve it
Is this my fault
Questions you ask yourself
in the final moment
Was anything truly worth it
Above us:
Wrong time,
wrong place.

For now, it’s safer
keeping our secrets.
Tension builds,
and in just a bit
it will all pour out.

Don’t look into my eyes
if you don’t want to share your story.
With every gaze, the gap is closing.

Something unvoiced is flowing.
The pendulum sways.
Is there life left?
Is it still a warm place,
or an illusory glow?

If you don’t want to let someone
into your territory,
please turn your head,
turn your eyes.

Seeing right through, you betray
who you were
and who you became.
The nemesis, genesis – as I’m naming the voices that echo
within me, the moment I drew my first breath. They love
to play presentence, they speak tainted truths in the limits
of my psyche; giving me their word before my sentencing.

They believe in foretelling my fate in my mind’s prison –
casting judgment with every utterance; can I compete
with these thoughts, will I finish their sentences?

Often, I find myself so imprisoned in my own mind –
yet the irony lies in the fact that the door stands open,
as we permit our thoughts to dominate with their own
rule, and goals of leaving us so, so broken.

My mind is a place I roam around with caution!
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